CNA Classes & Programs in Louisiana

Before starting your training, it's important to understand exactly what Louisiana requires to become a Certified Nurse Aide (CNA). Meeting these requirements ensures you're eligible to take the state competency evaluation, be placed on the Louisiana Certified Nurse Aide Registry (LCNAR), and work as a CNA in nursing facilities and other healthcare settings throughout the state.

Eligibility

• Age requirement: Louisiana defines a nurse aide trainee as an individual who is at least 16 years old and enrolled in a nurse aide training and competency evaluation program.
• Program enrollment: The standard pathway requires completion of a Louisiana Department of Health (LDH)-approved Nurse Aide Training Program. Approved programs may be offered by community colleges, vocational-technical programs, nursing facilities, and other educational entities approved by LDH.
• Alternative pathways: Certain RN or LPN students, foreign-trained nurses, military-trained applicants, and licensed nurses whose licenses are suspended or on probation may qualify to take the competency examination after receiving approval from LDH. Louisiana law also allows an individual who successfully completes one semester of an RN or practical nursing program that includes foundational nursing skills to apply to take an approved nurse aide competency examination without completing the standard nurse aide training program.

Training Hours & Clinicals

Louisiana-approved nurse aide training programs must provide at least 80 total hours of training, consisting of 40 hours of classroom instruction and 40 hours of clinical training. Clinical instruction must be conducted in a nursing home or hospital-based skilled nursing facility unit.

The curriculum covers communication and interpersonal skills, infection control, safety and emergency procedures, residents' rights, promoting residents' independence, basic nursing skills, personal care, restorative services, mental health and social-service needs, and care of residents with cognitive impairments. Before providing direct care to residents, trainees must complete at least 16 hours of instruction in the federally required introductory subjects, including communication, infection control, safety and emergency procedures, promoting residents' independence, and residents' rights.

Students may perform only services for which they have been trained and found proficient and must be appropriately supervised while providing care during clinical training. Under federal rules, a Medicare- or Medicaid-certified nursing facility may employ an individual as a nurse aide for no more than four months unless the individual has completed the applicable training and competency requirements and is listed on the state nurse aide registry.

Competency Exam (Knowledge & Skills)

After completing an approved eligibility pathway, candidates must pass Louisiana's state-approved nurse aide competency evaluation. The Louisiana Department of Health currently approves Prometric and the Louisiana Community and Technical College System (LCTCS) to administer competency evaluations. The examination includes both a knowledge component and a clinical skills component.

• Knowledge examination: Candidates must pass a written or approved oral knowledge examination covering the subjects and competencies required of an entry-level nurse aide. Under Prometric's current Louisiana examination, the knowledge test contains 60 questions—50 scored questions and 10 unscored pretest questions—and candidates have 90 minutes to complete it.
• Clinical skills examination: Louisiana requires candidates to demonstrate at least five nurse aide skills selected from the required pool of competency tasks. Under Prometric's current examination, candidates are evaluated on five skills, including handwashing and indirect care, with three additional skills assigned by the testing system.

New nurse aides must pass both portions of the competency evaluation within 12 months of completing their training. Candidates have up to three attempts to pass each portion. If a candidate fails one portion, only the failed portion must be retaken. A candidate who does not pass both portions within the permitted attempts must complete another Louisiana-approved nurse aide training program before testing again.

Placement on the Registry & Working as a CNA

After successfully passing both portions of the competency evaluation and meeting the applicable eligibility requirements, your information is submitted to the Louisiana Certified Nurse Aide Registry (LCNAR), maintained by the Louisiana Department of Health. Approved competency evaluation programs must report successful candidates to the Registry, and your certification can then be verified through Louisiana's online registry.

A CNA employed by or contracted to provide nursing assistant services in a Louisiana nursing facility must have a valid and current registration with the Louisiana Certified Nurse Aide Registry. The Registry also maintains information concerning certification status and findings of abuse, neglect, or misappropriation of resident property.

Certification Maintenance

Louisiana nurse aide certification is valid for two years. To remain certified, you must perform at least 8 hours of paid nursing or nursing-related services during every consecutive 24-month period. The work must be performed in an approved setting.

Approved settings include LDH-licensed nursing homes, hospitals, home health agencies, personal care attendant agencies, assisted living programs, hospice agencies, respite agencies, supervised independent living agencies, adult day health care programs, and intermediate care facilities for individuals with developmental disabilities. Work history must be submitted to the Registry by an approved employer or provider; CNAs cannot report their own work history. Private-duty sitting does not qualify unless it is performed through a licensed provider, and staffing-agency work generally does not qualify unless the work is performed at a nursing home and reported by the nursing home.

If you do not have the required qualifying work history during a 24-month certification period, you may be eligible to retest once within the two years immediately following expiration. You must pass both the knowledge and skills portions on that attempt to regain certification. If you do not retest within the permitted period, or if you fail either portion of the recertification examination, you must complete another approved nurse aide training program before testing again.

Reciprocity

A CNA who is currently certified and in good standing on another state's nurse aide registry may apply for Louisiana certification through reciprocity without completing Louisiana training or taking the competency examination. Reciprocity applications are processed through Prometric, which verifies the application before forwarding the applicant's information to LDH for final review and placement on the Louisiana Certified Nurse Aide Registry.

Applicants must submit the required reciprocity application, proof of identity, and other documentation required by Prometric and LDH. The current Prometric process requires a copy of the applicant's Social Security card and a government-issued Louisiana identification card or qualifying military identification. The current reciprocity application processing fee is $35.

Costs & Reimbursement

Training costs vary by approved program. Testing fees also depend on the approved testing vendor and should be confirmed before registering. Under Prometric's current Louisiana fee schedule, the combined written and clinical skills examination costs $125. The oral and clinical skills combination also costs $125. For retesting, the written or oral examination costs $40, while the clinical skills examination costs $85.

Under federal law, an individual who is employed by—or has received an offer of employment from—a Medicare- or Medicaid-certified nursing facility when beginning an approved nurse aide training and competency evaluation program may not be charged for the training, textbooks, required course materials, or competency evaluation.

If an individual initially pays these expenses and becomes employed by or receives an offer of employment from a certified nursing facility within 12 months after completing the training and competency evaluation program, the state must provide for reimbursement of eligible costs on a prorated basis during the period in which the individual is employed as a nurse aide.

Sources: Louisiana Department of Health – CNA Registry, Louisiana Department of Health – Nurse Aide Training and Certification Maintenance, Louisiana Department of Health – Nurse Aide Training Programs, Louisiana Administrative Code Title 48, Part I, Chapter 100 – Nurse Aide Training and Competency Evaluation Program, Louisiana Department of Health – Approved CNA Certification Testing Vendors, Prometric – Louisiana Nurse Aide, Prometric – Louisiana CNA Candidate Information Bulletin, Louisiana Revised Statutes §40:2120.52 – Registration of Certified Nurse Aides, 42 CFR 483.152 – Federal Nurse Aide Training and Reimbursement Requirements